I was inspired by this story in the New York Times about about a TikTok creator. So, what is TikTok? I joined and have been a consumer on the platform for the last few months. I like the app and getting to watch people make humor and share creative short videos. It’s a lot like Vine (though in my opinion, nothing can every really replace the magic and fun of Vine).
It made me think about how often in the workplace, ideas are stolen by people in positions of power. In this episode, I talk through getting over that and rising above it.
Recently, an article came out in the New York Times about the creator of the dance and it really opened my eyes. I had no idea that the dance was created by a young girl named Jalaiah. I thought all of this time it was made popular by a girl named Charli. The article talks about black creatives not getting the attention that they deserve on the internet. If you know anything about how TikTok works, its easy to create something and have it blow up and not being able to find the source. The disappointing thing about this story when it first came out was that Charli has exploded as a TikTok creator and at the time, Jalaiah was not getting credit for her creation.
Set a time limit on your anger
Take time to process what happened before taking action.
Think abundantly
I will never worry about running out of ideas. No one steals bad ideas. So that means the person found your idea good enough to claim ownership of as their own. Just saying it out loud makes me feel better.
Make a plan
If you have an idea, move it forward a few steps after you get enthusiasm around it. Most people want to claim the credit for idea but very few people want to or have the capacity or capability to execute the idea. Read that sentence again. If you have a great idea, move it forward from just a concept to a reality. That will give you an advantage to help you own the concept.
Be Strategic
Email is a good start, but if email doesn’t work and the person ignores you’re messages then try a different approach.
Has this ever happened to you? How did you handle it?
Things mentioned in this episode:
The Original Renegade – New York Times article
From Pet to Threat – Medium article
